IN THE 20’s

During the early 1920s, nearly every movie was silent.
Musicians were employed by the Cinemas to play the piano or organ whilst silent movies were being viewed.
They were the perfect way to entertain audiences after the extreme horrors of world war 1.
Hollywood was the perfect place for outdoor filming as it was located near Los Angeles in the heart of a part of
America that had a very dry and sunny climate.
The major movie companies in Hollywood during this period were Paramount, Warner Brothers and MGM.
By marketing their cowboy films, romantic movies and detective stories, they succeeded in generating a huge interest in the movie stars.

In 1927 an average of 60 million Americans went to the cinema at least once a week and by 1929 this increased to 110 million.
The rise in audience was due to:
1) The development of audio films in 1927 which started the era of the
‘talkies.’,
2) Hollywood being increasingly successful and producing up to 500 films per year.
Cartoons also developed in the late 1920’s such as Mickey Mouse (1928) and Felix the Cat (1925) which was popular with a variety of different age groups. In 1929 The Oscars were established to honour film stars.

The young women of the 1920s were referred to as flappers.
Hollywood films in the 1920’s characterised women, and as a result, millions of women around the world imitated their behaviour and dress sense.
In 1919 womens' skirts were about six inches above ground level, but by 1927 the hems of